How Did The Month Of June Get Its Name?
Written by Naina Mahajan, a grade 6 student.
The word June traces back to the Latin word lunius, meaning Juno (luno), which refers to the Roman goddess, Juno…
Written by Naina Mahajan, a grade 6 student.
This article is was published in June 2021
The month of June is a time of mixed feelings. It’s full of the excitement of school starting again and the sadness of the summer holidays getting over. It’s quite hot, perfect for weekends spent at the beach or the pool. However, one question about this awesome month intrigues me.
How did this month get its name? What’s the story behind it?
Well, here is what I was able to garner.
The word June traces back to the Latin word lunius, meaning Juno (luno), which refers to the Roman goddess, Juno. Although the word is spelled as luno in Latin, it’s pronounced as Juno, the J sound coming from French. Its spelling, however, didn’t change in English until about the late 17th century.
The word luno itself seems to come from a Latin word iuventas, meaning youth. The word iuventas is related to words like juvenile and rejuvenate. In Ancient Rome, the fourth month of their year, part of a ten-month calendar, was lunius.
So, who is Juno, I hear you ask?
Juno is identified as the Roman counterpart to the Greek goddess Hera. Juno was the queen of the gods, wife of Jupiter, and protector of Rome. She was the goddess of marriage, childbirth, and fertility. And this is how it got its name!
Now that we understand more about the name, how about we take a look at some events we celebrate in June?
June definitely has its fair share of holidays and celebrations. As you probably already know, we honor our fathers this month, on Father’s Day, on the third Sunday in June.
We also commemorate the freedom of the last African American slaves on Juneteenth (June 19th). It’s also African-American Music Appreciation Month – in which we celebrate all the African-American music, from Louis Armstrong’s legendary blues to City Girl’s drip.
That’s all for this time! Happy lunius, everybody!
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